Lucketts SchoolPhotograph courtesy of Loudon County Parks and Recreation

A relic of simpler times, this little-altered elementary school is
the principal landmark of Lucketts, a farming community steadily witnessing
suburban encroachment. The Lucketts School educated three generations
of children until it closed in 1972. The Leesburg School District bought
five acres of land on June 20, 1912, for the sum of $625 on which to
build the first Lucketts School. Built in 1913, the weatherboarded structure
originally had four classrooms with no electricity or indoor plumbing.
Although lacking modern utilities, the building was not without architectural
dignity. With its regular facade and belfry, its design conformed to
those published in architectural plan books of the early 1900s.

Lucketts School circa 1919-1928Photograph from National Register collection

The building was expanded in 1919, and again in 1929, with the addition
of two classrooms, an auditorium with dressing rooms, central heating
and plumbing. Teachers earned about $400 a year during this period of
time. The interior retains many early fittings including wooden wainscoting,
embossed metal ceilings, slate blackboards, and a flexible wooden room
divider. The school closed in 1972. A focus of local preservation interests,
the building was converted to a community center. In 1981 the Loudoun
County Department of Parks, Recreation, and Community Services reopened
the school as a community center featuring year-round programs and activities,
including the Lucketts Bluegrass Music series on Saturday evenings from
October to April and the Lucketts Fair, held the last weekend of each
August.

Lucketts School is located at 42361 Lucketts Rd., in Leesburg. It
is open Monday, Wednesday, Friday 9:00am to 5:00pm; Tuesday, Thursday
9:00am to 9:00pm, and Saturday 9:00am to 12:30pm. Call 703-771-5281
for further information.